Cities are no longer waiting for their national governments to take the lead in reducing air pollution. They’re taking matters into their own hands.

Chicago’s Mayor Richard M. Daley announced a plan in September to reduce heat-trapping gases to three-fourths of 1990 levels by 2020.  The plan calls for installing solar panels on municipal property and building alternative fueling stations.  Low-cost housing complexes will be retrofitted to reduce water and energy use.

Houston, a megalopolis with a severe smog problem, also unveiled an energy plan.  Not only will solar panels be installed on rooftops, but city traffic light bulbs will be changed to light-emitting diodes and wind energy will replace natural-gas plants.  The city will add hybrid cars to its fleet.

Both mayors find themselves under pressure for action on climate change.  First, city dwellers are demanding cleaner environments.  After sifting through Environmental Protection Agency data, the Chicago Tribune found that residents of the windy city face some of the highest risks for cancer and lung problems in the United States.  Many of those risks are linked to toxic chemicals spewing from factory smokestacks.

Second, cities are increasingly aware of natural disasters. Chicago’s heat wave killed 600 people in 1995. Eighty percent of New Orleans was flooded when its levees and floodwalls broke during Hurricane Katrina in 2005. And Hurricane Ike left Galveston, Texas without electricity, gas or water pressure last September.

Finally, cities need to save money.  Anti-sprawl planning, better public transit, and energy-efficient buildings help municipalities lower their bills.  These policies attract businesses looking for cost-saving alternatives.  They also create green jobs that maintain a stable tax base.

The promotion of actions to curb climate change from within city boundaries has grown rapidly across the United States.  In 2005 141 U.S. mayors signed a Climate Protection Agreement in which they pledged to reduce emissions in their cities to seven percent below 1990 levels by 2012.  Since then 884 towns have joined the initiative (Map of participating mayors).  They are emboldened by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger who signed a bill last month that curbs urban sprawl to control greenhouse gas emissions.  The bill is the first of its kind in the United States.

Worldwide, cities generate nearly 50 percent of greenhouse gas emissions, according to David Satterthwaite, a Senior Fellow at the International Institute for Environment and Development in London.  As a result, it is not just American cities that are fighting heat-trapping gasses.

New Delhi, for instance, requires buses, taxis and rickshaws to discard gasoline or diesel fuel for compressed natural gas.  Toronto has retrofitted more than 200 city-owned buildings, such as civic arenas and police stations, to reduce their energy consumption.  It plans to introduce garbage trucks that run solely on biodiesel.   "Hogtown" even offers access to Zerofootprint Toronto, an innovative website that helps city residents and businesses measure their carbon footprint. They can see online the impact of their lifestyle choice and receive tips on how to reduce their imprint on the planet.

These city-sponsored initiatives cost money.  Chicago’s Office of Economic Analysis, according to the San Francisco Chronicle, estimates that the city’s new building codes will cost between $30 million and $700 million a year in economic output, largely because businesses might move out of the city in fear of higher rents.   And the Canada Green Building Council estimates that LEED certification, standards for environmentally sustainable construction, can increase average building costs from three to 15 percent.

This of course will never match the $22 billion that the United Arab Emirates is spending to create Masdar City, a carbon-free town on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi.  Ten years from now, if all goes according to plan, this six-square kilometer city will emit zero carbon emissions. Solar panels will generate electricity, water will be recycled and narrow streets will reduce the need for air conditioning.  Residents will travel aboard pods running on magnetic tracks.

This unique city from scratch will showcase what environmentalists and businesses can do with lavish government financing.  But the rest of the world does not live in a dream-like setting.  Its urban population is expected to double by 2050.  Cities, therefore, have no choice but to improve their air quality, even if it means forging ahead with little support from national government coffers.

Fortunately, cities have the levers to influence urban environments.  They can, for instance, modify transportation systems so that commuters hop on a bus or bike to work.   They also can modify zoning regulations, as in California, so that residents are able to walk to the store instead of driving to buy milk.   Those tools will make a difference in the environment, even if it means saving the planet one city at a time.

See also article: Sustainable Cities and the Wealth of Nations

For More Information: Mayors Climate Protection Center